Airport security who would rather read sleep than X-ray bags

AIRPORT security staff have been suspended after being caught on camera sleeping and reading magazines while supposedly checking for terrorists.

RELAXING: Some airport security staff have been known to read magazines while working

Deep flaws in the system at Birmingham International Airport were uncovered by a whistleblower. Now there are demands for transatlantic flights from the airport to be grounded until it is improved.

Congressman Bennie G Thompson, chairman of the US Congress Homeland Security Committee, said that Continental Airways, which flies daily from Birmingham to New York, should halt its flights.

“It should be stopped until we can get better-trained personnel to do the job that is required to guarantee the safety of the passengers,” he said.

A six-month undercover investigation into the work done by staff of the ICTS airport security firm will be screened tomorrow night on ITV1’s Tonight With Trevor McDonald.

One worker spent two hours covering the duties of 17, women travellers were not searched because no female employee was present – and staff were sleeping, doing puzzles or reading, instead of watching screens.

The programme will also allege that planes were left unguarded by ICTS staff and aircraft cabins were not searched properly.

One worker boasts that he got a job despite criminal convictions for grevious bodily harm and drink-driving.

Whistleblower Colin Cross worked for ICTS at the airport for 10 years before resigning. He was the supervisor of a team employed to protect the daily Continental Airlines flight from Birmingham Airport to New York.

He tells Tonight: “My main fear is that sooner or later either a terrorist will get on board the flight or somebody will infiltrate an improvised explosive device. Over the past six years, it has deteriorated badly.

“The people that they’re not searching, who they are supposed to be searching, could genuinely be a threat to the flight.”

A worrying exchange between supervisors is recorded . One says: “You know what? F*** Continental. I’m f***ing sick of Continental.”

Another replies: “And me.” The first one responds: “No one gives a f*** about anything in this airport apart from f***ing Continental. I hope the flight f***ing blows up.” The other replies: “And me.”

ICTS has a contract to supply 17 staff to protect the daily Air India flights to Toronto and Delhi from Birmingham Airport.

In 1985, a terrorist bomb brought down an Air India flight from Canada to London and 329 passengers died. The airline remains a terror target.

This investigation shows that ICTS rarely supplies anywhere near 17 staff: the investigators record an incident when only one employee works alone on the flight for two hours, while passengers check in.

Hidden cameras capture a supervisor reacting to the incident. He says: “There is no security, is there?”

Speaking to the lone security agent, Colin Cross says: “How are you going to manage?” Agent: “I don’t know. I was thinking of like putting my shorts on – check ‘em in, run through the back – make sure the bags are all right, run back out of there and do a little Ali shuffle in between.”

Air India told Tonight it conducted its own check in April, because ICTS’s work was not up to standard. The company’s performance was being monitored and the airline had put in its own security manager.

ICTS recently won a contract to guard the whole perimeter of the airport, but in April, before the findings of Tonight’s investigation were made known, it lost the contract for X-raying suspect bags at Birmingham Airport Terminal One.

Birmingham International Airport says: “Based on information provided by ITV prior to broadcast, we are confident there have been no breaches of the UK Department for Transport’s mandated security procedures.

“The allegations relate to second-ary screening processes which ICTS undertake, as a third-party contractor, for a limited number of airlines.

“Subject to ITV providing evidence, the ongoing investigations have resulted in a number of ICTS staff being suspended. Subject to ITV providing evidence that their actions and comments were obtained in a fair and reasonable manner, the airport company will ensure this investigation is now swiftly concluded.

“Birmingham International Airport would like to stress that all passengers travelling from the Airport are screened by its own security staff to Department of Transport standards and no breaches have been identified in these procedures.”